Stair chair



Get. 15, 1968 c, L. R ls 3,405,972

STAIR CHAIR Filed May 10, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. I

/ F|G.4 2 H65 M ff INVENTOR. 6 /4/2455 L. WORM) We M, P 13 Oct. 15, 1968 Filed May 10, 1967 FIG. m F1 9 W w l5 C. L. MORRIS STAIR CHAIR 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent m 3,405,972 STAIR CHAIR Charles L. Morris, 78 Blue Ridge Lane, West Hartford, Conn. 06117 Filed May 10, 1967, Ser. No. 637,397 13 Claims. (Cl. 297-217) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A chair having left and right hand leg braces which are of different lengths so that the chair can be placed on a flight of stairs to permit the user to sit facing a bannister with his feet on either of the two steps upon which the stair chair is mounted. The stair chair is collapsible and when mounted on a flight of stairs can be locked in its erected condition and held in sockets provided therefor on a wall opposite the bannister.

The present invention relates to stair chairs, and more particularly, to a stair chair for use on a flight of stairs having a wall on one side and a railing or bannister at the other side. The user of the stair chair sits facing the bannister and therefore need turn 90 to continue climbing or descending the stairs.

A general object of the invention is to provide on a flight of stairs, one or more chairs or resting places which are especially well adapted for use by a person afflicted with arthritis, heart trouble or other ailment requiring him to rest while going up or down a flight of stairs.

Another object of the invention is to provide one or more stair chairs or resting places which can be quickly and easily attached to a wall adjacent a flight of stairs so that the chair seat is located a convenient distance from the railing opposite the wall to enable a person to grasp the railing as he lowers or raises himself to or from the chair.

Another object of the invention is to provide a stair chair having effectively two different seat heights so that it may he sat upon either with the knees fully bent, as in a conventional chair sitting posture, or with the knees only partially bent, as when sitting on the edge of a desk or table.

Another object of the invention is to provide a stair chair which is adapted to be quickly and easily attached to a wall located on either the right or left-hand side of a flight of stairs.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a collapsible stair chair which can be folded into a compact condition. In keeping with this object it is a further object to provide a stair chair which can be folded back against the wall to which it is attached when the chair is not in use and which can be quickly unfolded by an arthritic person or the like for immediate use by him when the occasion so requires, or to alternatively provide a stair chair which can be easily attached to and removed from the flight of stairs and which when so removed may be folded into a compact condition for storage in a closet or other convenient place.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a stair chair of the foregoing character which is adjustable to fit stairs of various different tread widths and which is also adjustable to fit stairs of various different rise heights.

Of the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a stair chair embodying the present invention, the view showing the chair attached to a wall alongside of a flight of stairs having a bannister opposite the wall;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the stair chair shown in FIG. 1;

3,405,972 Patented Oct. 15, 1968 FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the chair .taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view taken generally on the line 44 of FIG. 1 and shows one of the fittings used in FIG. 1 for holding the chair to the wall;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view taken generally on the line 55 of FIG. 1 and shows the other fitting used in FIG. 1 for holding the chair to the wall;

FIG. 6 is a side view of a stair chair comprising an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the chair being shown in its erect condition;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the FIG. 6 stair chair taken along the line 77 of that figure, the solid lines showing the legs of the chair in their erect condition and the broken lines showing the legs in their folded condition;

FIG. 8 is a top view of the FIG. 6 stair chair;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a stair chair comprising still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a side view of the stair chair shown in FIG. 9, the solid lines showing the chair in its unfolded condition and the broken lines showing it in its folded condition;

FIG. 11 is a front elevational view of the FIG. 9 chair;

FIG. 12 is a top view of the FIG. 9 chair;

FIG. 13 is a side view of the FIG. 9 chair in use;

FIG. 14 is a side view of the FIG. 9 chair in use; and

FIG. 15 is an enlarged scale fragmentary view showing the hinge joint at the upper end of one of the front legs of the FIG. 9 chair, one hinge plate being shown partly broken away to reveal the shape of the leg.

Turning now to the drawings in greater detail, and first considering FIGS. 1 to 5, these figures relate to one embodiment of the invention consisting of a stair chair indicated generally at 20. FIG. 1 shows the chair 20 installed on a flight of stairs indicated generally at 22, having a wall 24 at one side and a railing or bannister 26 at the other side. Each stair is of conventional construction, having a horizontal tread 28 and a vertical riser 30. Each tread 28 extends outwardly beyond the associated riser 30, as is customary in most wood stair construction to be found in present day homes. The railing 26 is shown mounted atop a series of balusters 32, 32 of the type commonly used in present day homes. It should be understood, however, that these features are not essential to the present invention, the stair chair being equally well adapted to use in a hospital or other situation where the stairs and railing or bannister may be dilferent from those shown.

The stair chair 20 comprises a rigid seat member 34 and leg means connected to the underside of the seat member for supporting the latter at some convenient height above any two adjacent stair treads as best shown in FIG. 1. The various embodiments shown in the drawings differ chiefly in the construction of these leg means as will be apparent from the following descriptions of the different embodiments.

The leg means shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 comprise first and second elongated leg frames, 36 and 38 respectively, which at their upper ends are attached to the seat member 34 so as to depend therefrom and which at their lower ends are each adapted to engage and rest on a respective one of two adjacent stair treads. One frame 38 is shorter than the other frame 36 so that when resting upon two adjacent stair treads they support the seat in a generally horizontal attitude as shown. The dimensional difference between the lengths of the leg frames 36 and 38 is preferably on the order of 7 /2 inches, and in any event within the range between 7 and 8 inches as the difference in the height between two adjacent treads customarily falls within this range.

Turning now to the construction of the leg frames 36 and 38, these are of generally similar construction, as best shown in the side view of FIG. 2, and are each made from a single length of metal tubing bent into the desired shape. The first, or longer leg frame 36 includes a generally ver tical front portion 44 which at its upper end is integrally connected to a downwardly and rearwardly inclined rear portion by a short horizontal portion 41. The seat member 34 is connected to this portion by two bolts 48, 48 which are received in aligned openings in the seat member and the leg portion 41. As best shown in FIG. 3, two extra openings 52, 52 are provided in the seat member 34 near the leg frame 36 so that the latter can be adjusted relative to the seat member by inserting the bolts in either set of openings in the seat member, thereby permitting the chair to be used with stairs of various different tread widths as set forth in greater detail hereinbelow. Finally, the first leg frame 36 has a lower portion 54 which is integrally connected with the lower end of the front portion 44 and joined to the lower end of the rear portion 40 by a screw or rivet 55 as best shown in FIG. 2.

The second or shorter leg frame 38 includes a generally vertical front portion 46 which at its upper end is integrally connected to a downwardly and rearwardly inclined rear portion 42 by a short horizontal portion 45. The seat member 34 is bolted to this portion 45 of the second leg frame 38 in the same manner as the first leg frame 36 and extra openings 52, 52 are preferably provided in the seat 34 to permit a further degree of adjustment of the chairs legs for stairs of various different tread widths. A lower portion 56 of the second leg frame 38 in integrally connected to the lower end of the front portion 46 and joined to the lower end of the rear portion 42 by a screw or rivet 57 as best shown in FIG. 2.

Still with reference to the leg frames 36 and 38, another structural feature of each of these frames should be mentioned. From FIG. 3 it will be noted that the upper horizontal portions thereof do not extend in a straight line transversely of the seat member but instead are of a Z shape as viewed in this figure. The reason for this somewhat more complicated tubular construction is that in providing the extra bends of the Z shape the bolt holes may be offset from the plane of the leg frames to increase the stability or sturdiness of the chair by providing a moment arm between the bolts and the plane of the leg frames to resist tipping of the leg frames to one side or the other. The leg frames are in fact so shaped that even if the chair should be inverted and the screws removed the leg frames would remain in a stable upright position.

As shown in FIG. 1, the lower portions 54 and 56 of the leg frames 36 and 38, respectively, extend rearwardly to the wall 24 and are attached thereto by separate releasable attachment means which permit the chair to be rapidly attached to or released from the wall 24 adjacent the flight of stairs 22. The attachment means for the first leg frame 36, as best shown in FIG. 5, comprises a first socket member 58 which is preferably formed from a metal strap bent into a generally U-shape for receiving the rear end 61 of the lower leg portion 54 which is upturned and flattened as shown. The member 58 has ends which are apertured to receive a pair of screws used in attaching the same to the wall, and as so attached the member 58 and the wall 24 define an opening or socket for receiving the end 61.

The attachment means also includes a second socket member 64 adapted to be screwed to the wall 24. This member is an L-shaped met-a1 strap, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, and has two mutually perpendicular arms which are apertured to receive a pair of screws used in attaching the same to the wall. At the junction of the two arms the member 64 is offset from the end portions of the arms to define, in combination with the wall 24, a socket opening 63 for receiving the rear end 62 of the lower leg portion 56 which is also upturned and flattened as shown. The member 64 is so fastened to the wall that one of its arms is located vertically above the socket opening 63 while the other arm is located on the side of said opening opposite from the adjacent riser 30. The attachment members 58 and 64 are also so located on the wall 24 that the shorter leg frame 38 engages the projecting edge of the tread on the adjacent stair as best shown in FIG. 1. As so arranged the stair chair 20 has a high degree of lateral stability obviating the need for any cross brace between the first and second leg frames 56 and 58 respectively. It is also a feature of the chair stair 20 that once the socket members 58 and 62 have been properly attached to the wall the chair can be readily attached thereto and detached therefrom by picking up the seat member 34 and tilting the same towards the wall 24.

Turning now to the stair chair construction depicted in FIGS. 6, 7 and 8, the chair of these figures is indicated generally at 65 and is in most respects similar to the chair 20 except for being collapsible to make for more convenient storage when not in use. The chair 65 includes a seat member 70, two leg frames 66 and 68, a cross brace 74 and four U-shaped brackets 72, 72 for pivotally attaching the leg frames to the seat member. The leg frames 66 and 68 are or may be identical with the leg frames 36 and 38, respectively, except that the upper portions 37 and 39 thereof extend straight across the width of the seat member in order to permit the desired pivotal movement, rather than being of a Z-shape as are the corresponding portions 41 and 45 of the leg frames 36 and 38, and except for including apertures for accommodating the cross brace 74 as hereinafter described. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 each leg frame has associated therewith two of the U-shaped brackets 72, 72 which straddle the associated upper leg portion 37 or 39 to pivotally attach the leg frame to the seat member 70 for movement between an erect and a collapsed position relative to the seat member. In FIG. 7 the solid lines show the erect positions of the leg frames and the broken lines show their collapsed positions.

In order to provide lateral adjustability of the leg frames to suit the chair 65 to stairs of various different tread widths, each of the U-shaped supports 72, 72 is adapted to be attached to the seat member 70 by bolts or other fasteners passed through any one of a number of available pairs of openings 71, 71, see FIG. 8, in the seat member. That is, the leg frames are attached to the seat by using any combination of openings 71, 71 in the seat member, and by properly choosing the openings various different spacings between the leg frames may be obtained.

In view of the collapsibilty of the chair 65 it must be braced as shown in FIG. 7 to prevent the leg frames from folding during use. As shown, the chair is braced by the elongated cross brace 74 which is pivotally connected at one end to the leg frame 68 by a bolt and washer assembly or other means 76 and which has a notch 78 adjacent its other end. When the leg frames 66 and 68 are in their erect positions the notch 78 receives the shank of a bolt 80 secured to the leg frame 66, as shown in FIG. 6, and the brace 74 is releasably held to the bolt 80 by a wing nut 84. In the leg frame 66 are a number of openings 85, 85. The bolt 80 may be selectively placed in any one of these openings to allow proper engagement of the notch 78 with the bolt 80 regardless of the spacing between the leg frames. The cross brace 74 and wing nut 80 are preferably located at the rear of the front leg portions of the leg frames 66 and 68 so that they do not interfere with the clothing or the person of the user.

Still with reference to the FIGS. 6, 7 and 8 construction, it will be seen that the lower portion of each leg frame 66 or 68 is similar to the corresponding portion of the FIGS. 1 to 5 construction. Thus, the stair chair 65 of FIGS. 6 to 8 can also be readily attached to and detached from a wall through the use of socket members similar to the members 58 and 64.

Turning now to the chair construction shown in FIGS. 9 through 14, a stair chair is there shown which is adapted to be collapsed or folded against the wall 24 as indicated by the broken lines of FIG. 10.

As shown, the chair 90 comprises a seat member 92 supported by first and second leg means, 94 and 96 respectively, the latter being somewhat shorter than the former so as to support the seat member horizontally above two adjacent stair treads in the same manner as set forth hereinabove with reference to the chairs 20 and 65. The first leg means 94 includes front and rear legs 98 and 100, respectively, which are vertically arranged with their lower end portions resting upon a first stair tread and with their upper ends pivotally connected to a seat support member 102. The second leg means 96 is similarly constructed and comprises front and rear vertical legs 104 and 106 respectively, which legs have their lower ends resting on a second stair tread and have their upper ends pivotally connected to a seat support member 108. The seat support members 102 and 108 are in turn connected to the seat member 92 by a plurality of bolts 110, 110 each of which is selectively receivable in any one of a number of openings 111, 111 provided therefor in the seat member 92, to permit adjustment of the spacing between the leg means.

The rear legs 100 and 106 are releasably attached to the wall 24 by socket members 114 and 115 respectively. The member 114 is a U-shaped strap or bracket which in combination with the wall forms a socket opening for receiving the leg 100, the member having two apertured end portions adapted to receive screws for mounting the same to the wall. The member 115 is generally similar to the member 114, but includes only one apertured end portion to avoid possible interference with the adjacent stair riser. The chair 90 is thus adapted to be attached to the wall 24 by inserting the rear legs 100 and 106 into the openings provided by the socket members 114 and 115 and can quite easily be placed in and removed from its active position on a flight of stairs. To aid in stabilizing the chair the members 114 and 115 are preferably so placed that the short legs engage the projecting edge of the adjacent tread, and a hook and eye fastener such as shown at 107 may be provided for holding one of the legs to the tread.

Each leg means 94 or 96 also includes a lower spreader or rung 116 or 118 which is arranged generally parallel to the associated seat support member 102 or 108. These spreaders 116 and 118 are equally spaced from their associated seat support members 102 and 108 respectively, and the latter spreader 118 is seen to be located quite close to the stair tread of the second stair as shown in FIG. 11. At each of its ends each spreader is pivotally connected to the adjacent leg to prevent collapsing movement of the chair parts.

In order to provide a degree of vertical adjustment in the leg means 94 or 96, whereby the seat 92 can be positioned horizontally in spite of variations in the height of the stair risers, a height adjusting means is or may be provided in the lower portions of the legs. In the illustrated case this means comprises a number of feet or pads 124, 124 having threaded stems threadably received in threaded sockets or openings in the lower ends of the legs. Preferably all four legs are provided with threaded openings but, although four feet 124, 124 may be used if desired, it is sufficient to use only two feet, these being applied to either the legs 98 and 100 or the legs 104 and 106 as required to make the seat member horizontal A wide brace 120 extends laterally between the two front legs 98 and 104 and is secured thereto by bolts 121, 121 which are received in holes 122, 122 provided therefor in the brace 120. Preferably and as shown the brace has at least two extra pairs of holes as shown to permit the lateral spacing between the leg means 94 and 96 to be varied to fit stairways of at least three different tread widths.

It is a feature of the stair chair 90 that it can be folded rearwardly and upwardly to a collapsed position as shown by the broken lines in FIG. 10. The chair can therefore be conveniently stowed against the wall 24 so as not to interfere with normal use of the stairway. To provide a stair chair which can be so folded, the various parts are pivotally connected one to another as mentioned before, and the pivotal connections are such that in the collapsed condition of the chair the spreaders and seat support members lie generally flat against the associated rear legs and 106, and the front legs 98 and 104 in turn lie generally flat against the spreader and seat support members. It is not necessary however that the parts lie completely flat against one another and in fact such fiat engagement may not always be desirable and may make it is difficult to move the chair from its collapsed to its active position due to the joints tending to move in the wrong direction when the seat member is pulled out from the wall. The pivot connections are further such that in the active condition of the chair, loads applied to the seat member are transferred to the front legs as direct compression loads without passing through a hinge.

More particularly, and as shown in FIG. 15, the front legs 98 and 104 are so connected to the seat support members 102 and 108, that the pivot axes are spaced below the seat support members by a distance equal to about half the thickness of the legs as viewed in FIG. 10. The pivot axes of the joints between the front legs 98 and 104 and the spreaders 116 and 118 are spaced behind the legs 98 and 104 by a distance equal to about half the thickness of the spreaders; the pivot axes of the joints between the upper ends of the rear legs 100 and 106 and the seat support members 102 and 108 are spaced in front of the rear legs by a distance equal to about half the thickness of the seat support members; and the joints between the rear legs 100 and 106 and the spreaders are spaced in front of the rear legs by a distance equal to about half the thickness of the spreaders. Moreover, the joints are so located that, referring to FIG. 10 wherein the four pivot axes of the leg means 94 are indicated at A, B, C and D, the distance AD plus the distance AB is equal to the distance BC plus the distance CD. From FIG. 10 it will therefore be evident that this arrangement of pivot axes permits the seat member of the chair to be swung between the solid and broken line positions shown.

The pivot joints may be made in various different ways but as shown each comprises two hinge plates 126, 126 fastened to opposite sides of one of the joined members by two bolts passing through the hinge plates and the member, and also comprises a hinge pin 128 carried by the hinge plates and passing through the other joined member. The construction of the upper front hinge joints is shown in FIG. 15. From this figure it will be noted that the illustrated leg 98 is so shaped at its upper end as to provide a rounded surface 130 coaxial with the pin 128 to permit the leg to pivot the desired amount relative to the seat support member 102, and to also provide a flat surface 132 which is located forwardly of the pin 128 when the leg is in its erect position and which flatly engages the lower surface of the seat support member. As result, loads placed on the seat member 92 are transferred directly to the leg through the surface 132 rather than through the hinge connection and maximum sturdiness is obtained. It will be understood that the other upper front hinge joint, the one between the seat support member 108 and the leg 104, is or may be similar to that shown in FIG. 15.

Preferably some means is provided for releasably holding the chair 90 in its folded condition. This means may take various forms and, as shown in FIG. 10, may comprise a friction catch constituted of two cooperating parts 134 and 136 fastened to the leg 98 and the seat support member 102 respectively. When the seat member is in its raised position the parts 134 and 136 coengage and frictionally retain the chair parts in the broken line positions of FIG. 10. Pulling the seat out from the wall,

however, causes the parts 134 and 136 to be drawn apart to allow movement of the chair to the solid line position. Also, when the parts 134 and 136 are coengaged they hold the seat support member 102 a slight distance from the leg 98, as will be observed in FIG. 10, and this prevents any difficulty in pulling the seat member from the wall due to the lower front joints moving rearwardly toward the wall, rather than away from the wall as desired.

At this point it should be noted that one of the features of all three chair constructions discussed above is that they provide a seat member which extends across, or at least partially across, two adjacent stair treads. Therefore, the seat member has effectively two different heights depending upon which tread the user places his feet. As shown in FIG. 13, wherein the chair 90 is shown by way of example, the length of the legs are so chosen that when the user places his feet in the higher of the two adjacent stair treads the seat member will support him at a normal chair height whereat his knees are bent at about a right angle. With the legs of this length, when the user places his feet on the lower of the two adjacent chair treads the seat member will support him in the attitude shown in FIG. 14 whereat his knees are only partially bent. Furthermore, the railing 26 is close to the user and facing him so as to be easily grasped for aiding the user in lowering and raising himself relative to the chair.

The invention claimed is:

1. A stair chair for use on a flight of stairs having a wall on at least one side thereof, said stair chair comprising a rigid seat member, first leg means connected to said seat member, second leg means connected to said seat member in spaced relation to said first leg means, the spacing between said first and second leg means being greater than the Width of one stair tread but less than the combined width of two stair treads, said first leg means having a lower portion adapted to engage the tread of a first stair-and said second leg means having a lower portion adapted to engage the tread of a second stair adjacent said first stair, said first and second leg means being so related in height that when said lower portions thereof are supported on said first and second stair treads respectively, said seat member is supported in a horizontal position and is spaced above the higher of said first and second treads by a distance greater than the vertical spacing therebetween, and means for securing each of said leg means to said wall.

2. A stair chair as set forth in claim 1 wherein said seat is connected to said first and second leg means by a plurality of fasteners passing through registering openings in said seat member and in said leg means, said seat member including extra openings for receiving said fasteners to permit said leg means to be attached thereto at various different spacings to adapt said stair chair to stairs of various tread widths.

3. A stair chair as set forth in claim 1 wherein the dimensional difference between the lengths of said first and second leg means lies in the range between 7 and 8 inches.

4. A stair chair as set forth in claim 1 wherein each of said leg means comprises a generally four sided frame having upper and lower generally horizontal portions and front and rear generally vertical portions, said lower horizontal portions extending rearwardly beyond said rear vertical portion and being upturned at its rearmost end, and wherein said means for securing said leg means to the wall comprises a socket member associated with each of said upturned ends, said socket member being adapted to be permanently attached to said wall and with said wall defining an opening for receiving said upturned end portion of said frame.

5. A stair chair as set forth in claim 1 wherein said first and second leg means are hingedly connected to said seat member to permit said leg means to be folded relative to said seat member when the stair chair is not in use.

6. A stair chair as set forth in claim 5 and further characterized by a cross brace, means pivotally connecting one end of said cross brace to one of said leg means, and manually operable means for releasably securing the other end of said cross brace to the other of said leg means.

7. A stair chair as set forth in claim 6 further characterized by means permitting adjustment of at least one of said leg means relative to said seat member to vary the spacing between said leg means, and means permitting adjustment of said means for releasably securing said cross brace to said leg means to accommodate various different spacings between said leg means.

8. A stair chair for use on a flight of stairs having a wall on one side thereof, said stair chair comprising a rigid seat member positioned above two adjacent treads of said stairs, first leg means attached to said seat member adjacent one end thereof, second leg means attached to said seat member and spaced from said first leg means by a distance greater than the width of one stair tread but less than the combined width of two stair treads, each of said leg means having a vertical rear leg, means for attaching said rear legs to said wall, said first leg means having a vertical front leg of such length as to engage one of said two adjacent treads in its active position and said second leg means having a vertical front leg of such length as to engage the other of said two adjacent treads in its active position, and means connecting said front legs to said seat member and to said rear legs for movement of said front legs generally parallel to said rear legs between said active positions whereat said front legs are spaced from said wall and collapsed positions whereat said front legs are located closer to said wall.

9. A stair chair as set forth in claim 8 further characterized by said means for attaching said rear legs to said wall being so arranged that an intermediate portion of one of said front legs engages the edge of one of the treads of said flight of stairs to steady said stair chair.

10. A stair chair as set forth in claim 9 further characterized by means for releasably fastening said intermediate portion of said one front leg to said edge of said one tread.

11. A stair chair as set forth in claim 9 further characterized by height adjusting means in the lower portion of at least one of said leg means to permit said seat member to be leveled in spite of variations in the height of the raisers of said stairs.

12. A stair chair as set forth in claim 9 further characterized by a friction catch means for releasably holding said stair chair in its collapsed position.

13. A stair chair as set forth in claim 9 wherein each front leg is connected with the associated rear leg by a spreader and a seat supporting member each at one end pivotally connected to said front leg and at its other end pivotally connected to said rear leg, said spreader and seat support member being arranged horizontally when said chair is in its active position and generally vertically when the chair is in its collapsed position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 820,125 5/1906 Pennington 297-54 1,462,505 7/1923 Hunt 182-201 1,870,719 8/1932 Fain 297-43 2,635,676 4/1953 Graffius set 211. 297-54 2,722,970 11/1955 Stechmann 248-1882 3,233,702 2/1966 Feltrop 182-202 FRANCIS K. ZUGEL, Primary Examiner. 

